The Christmas Con

by Becky Harmon

  “Please,” Alexa begged.

  “Let’s see what’s in the kitchen cabinets.”

  Devon opened every cabinet until she found the pancake mix and a bag of mini chocolate chips. When the skillet was warm, she let Alexa pour the batter and flip each pancake. Then she placed chocolate chips in the middle making eyes and a smiley face. The chocolate quickly melted, and Devon slid a pancake onto each plate.

  “I can eat two.” Alexa informed her. “And you better make one for mom, too.”

  Devon didn’t argue with her. They were sitting down to eat when Sabrina walked in.

  “What’s going on here?” Sabrina asked, kissing Alexa on the head.

  Alexa motioned to the plate beside her. “Devon made this one for you, Mom.”

  “Wow, this is great,” Sabrina said sitting down at the table.

  Devon’s stomach fluttered when Sabrina smiled at her. In between bites of pancake, Sabrina chatted with Alexa about everything they done before she went to bed the previous night.

  “Sounds like you guys had a great time.” Sabrina looked at Devon. “I can’t thank you enough. Thank you for breakfast too.”

  “My pleasure.”

  Sabrina stood and picked up her plate. “I’ll clean this up and then I’m headed to bed.”

  Devon stood, too. “No, we’ll get it. Go ahead and get some sleep.”

  “Yeah, mom. We got this,” Alexa chimed in.

  Devon watched Sabrina pick her daughter up in a tight hug. They exchanged a few whispered words before Sabrina stood her back on her feet. She met Sabrina’s smile over Alexa’s head.

  “I’ll be home in time for you to get to work in the morning,” Sabrina explained. “If you’re okay to stay again tonight.”

  “Absolutely. I can’t think of anything I’d rather do.” She knew as the words came out of her mouth that there was something she would prefer. Spending time with Alexa—and Sabrina.

  “I’ll make dinner tonight if you want to join us,” Sabrina said shyly.

  Devon’s heart fluttered at the invitation. Was there any question she would be here?

  “I’ll be here,” she assured Sabrina. “Now, go to bed.”

  Sabrina hesitated for a second before leaving the room.

  Devon was lost in her own thoughts as she thought about what had made Sabrina hesitate. What was she going to say? The things running through her mind made her heart race. The dishes were almost finished when she realized Alexa had not said a word.

  As she dipped the last plate under the water and placed it in the strainer to dry, she bumped Alexa with her hip. “Everything okay?

  “Yeah, but can I ask you something?”

  “Of course.” Devon braced for an uncomfortable kid question.

  “Do you live with someone?”

  Devon made an overexaggerated grimace at her, making Alexa laugh. “No,” she said dragging the word out and bumping Alexa’s with her hip again. “Why?”

  “I just wondered if there would be anyone else at your house when mom and I came over to decorate.”

  “Nope it’s only me. That’s why I need help decorating. I’m not very good at it.”

  “I’m very good at it,” Alexa said excitedly. “You should stay here today, and we can plan everything.”

  She wasn’t really surprised when she agreed to Alexa’s suggestion. The day passed quickly and the pleased look on Sabrina’s face when she woke up to find them playing a board game was a welcome reward.

  During dinner, she shared stories about her family, even though she knew she didn’t want to continue the lie. It was easy to pretend there wasn’t a con and they were only getting ready for her parents’ visit.

  “Can’t I open one present?” Alexa asked, pulling Devon back to the dinner table. “It’s Christmas Eve!”

  “Nope,” Sabrina said for the twentieth time. “However, I will let you watch a movie in bed, if you shower now and start it immediately.”

  “Okay.” Alexa ran from the room.

  “Wow, that was easy.”

  Sabrina laughed. “Oh, she’s not in bed yet.”

  She studied Sabrina’s face and it was easy to imagine what Alexa would look like in twenty years. She couldn’t believe how blessed she was to have them in her life, and she felt a niggling of fear of possibly losing them too soon. Especially if this plan went awry.

  “Why did you agree to my crazy request?” she asked.

  Sabrina chuckled. “Well, it’s true that I wasn’t looking forward to spending Christmas alone and it sounded weirdly comforting to have this pretend long-term relationship.” A faint blush began to creep up her neck. “And I had been watching you for a while.”

  “What?”

  “Not watching really. That sounds creepy, but I had noticed you. This plan seemed like a good way to get to know you.”

  “I noticed you too, but you shocked me when you accepted my coffee invitation.”

  “I saw the surprised look on your face when I said yes.”

  She reached across the table and covered Sabrina’s hand with her own. “I appreciate your willingness, but I’m not sure I want to go through with this plan.”

  Sabrina shook her head. “Me either. It’s not the way I’d like to meet your parents.”

  “Mom!” Alexa’s voice echoed through the house.

  Sabrina stood keeping her eyes on Devon. “I’d like to have dinner with you and your parents, but Alexa and I will do whatever you decide.”

  Devon cleaned up the dishes and put the leftovers in the refrigerator. She had barely sat down in the living room when Alexa called her down the hallway too.

  She peeked into Alexa’s bedroom. Alexa was under the dinosaur comforter. Her hair was wet, and the scent of shower gel lingered in the room.

  “Will you watch the movie with me?” Alexa asked.

  “Of course.”

  Sabrina smiled at her as she slowly slid past her in the doorway. The fluttering was back in her stomach and she tried to push it away as she joined Alexa on the bed.

  Sabrina, dressed in her blue paramedic uniform, kissed Alexa’s forehead and then Devon’s before giving them a wave.

  “Merry Christmas,” Alexa called.

  “Merry Christmas, baby. I’ll see you in the morning,” Sabrina answered.

  Halfway through the Christmas movie, Alexa pushed pause on the remote control. She shifted in the bed to look at Devon.

  “Do you think we know enough to convince your parents tomorrow?”

  Devon was touched with the concern etched on the little girl’s face. What kind of person was she that she could even consider asking Alexa to lie? Or Sabrina?

  “You don’t need to worry, Alexa. I’m going to tell them the truth when they get here.”

  Alexa was silent for a few seconds, but she didn’t start the movie again.

  “What?” Devon finally asked.

  “It’s always just mom and me. I thought it sounded like fun to have grandparents. Are you afraid they won’t like me?”

  “Oh, they’ll love you.”

  “Great! Then the Christmas con is still on!”

  Devon shook her head. Hearing those words come from an eleven-year-old really hit her. She couldn’t do this. She would talk with her parents when they arrived and set the record straight.

  * * *

  “Devon, wake up!”

  Surprised, Devon sprung to her feet. Sabrina stood in Alexa’s bedroom doorway.

  “Hurry or you’re going to be late,” Sabrina said as she kissed Alexa’s forehead, waking her.

  “It’s present time!” Alexa squealed, leaping out of bed. “I’m going to sort the presents and get them ready.”

  Devon and Sabrina followed Alexa as she ran out of the room.

  “You should have this,” Devon said, removing the spare key from her ring and passing it to Sabrina. She leaned in and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. She froze and her eyes widened as she realized what she had done. “I’m so sorry. I
don’t know what came over me.”

  Sabrina’s smile was huge. “We’ll discuss it after your parents leave.”

  “I’ll call you after I pick up dinner tonight,” she called as she ran out the door.

  The drive to her apartment was a blur as she thought about the warmth of Sabrina’s lips and the Christmas excitement on Alexa’s face. She daydreamed about how the morning might have gone if she had been able to stay. She was turning the key in her door when she realized someone was calling her name. She turned at the sound of her mother’s voice.

  “Mom! What are you doing here?”

  “Your father went to bed at five yesterday and woke up at one this morning,” she moaned. “I was hoping we would catch you before you left for work. Where have you been? Were you at your girlfriend’s house? What’s her name, by the way? I was telling your father on the drive that I didn’t even know what name to write on the present.”

  “Her name is Sabrina.”

  “Oh, that’s pretty.”

  Devon shook her head. “Wait a minute. I need to talk to you and dad. Where is he?”

  “I’m right here, kiddo,” Walter announced as he walked through the door of the apartment building and gave her a hug.

  “Come on in,” Devon said, pushing open her front door. “I only have a few minutes but sit down, I have to tell you something.”

  Her parents took a seat on the couch as she paced in front of them. With only the couch, a coffee table and the dark Christmas tree to fill the room, the emptiness grew under her mother’s scrutiny. Andrea wouldn’t hold her tongue for very long and Devon knew the questions were about to fly. She didn’t feel any regret for spending her day with Alexa. She had always known in the back of her mind that she wasn’t going to continue the lie.

  “You look stressed, kiddo. What’s wrong?” Walter asked.

  She took a seat on the coffee table in front of them and rubbed her face. She had to get this over with before she lost her courage.

  “I haven’t been completely honest with you. There has never been a girlfriend.”

  “Then where were you all night?” Andrea asked.

  “I’m seeing someone but it’s new.”

  “Why would you lie to us?” Andrea demanded.

  Devon rubbed her face again. Until this point she hadn’t been sure how honest she was going to be. She took a deep breath.

  “You know I love you both very much, right?”

  She waited while her parents looked at each and then back at her. They both nodded. Their worried faces made her rush her next words.

  “After I came out to the whole family, I never really felt comfortable coming home. It was okay in the summer when it was just us, but the holidays with everyone analyzing my life was too much.”

  “Oh, honey, you should have told us,” Walter said.

  “Well, you certainly didn’t have to lie,” Andrea added brusquely.

  “I’m truly sorry, Mom. And to you too, Dad. It started small and then it just grew. I want to make it right again. And now there is someone I want you to meet.”

  “I think we need some time to process what you’ve told us,” Andrea said, looking at Walter for agreement.

  “That’s fine,” Devon said standing. “I have to get to work so you have all day.”

  She quickly dressed in her uniform, breathing a sigh of relief that the con was over. They could have a nice dinner at Sabrina’s house. She knew her mother would approve of the comfy décor and Christmas decorations. And she was sure no one could refuse Alexa. Even her mother.

  “We’ll have dinner at Sabrina’s house,” she said when she emerged from her bedroom.

  “Oh, I don’t know,” Andrea said with a frown.

  Devon paused at the door. “Did I mention she has an eleven-year-old daughter?”

  “What?” Her parents said in unison.

  “Her name is Alexa and she can’t wait to meet you.”

  Devon quickly closed the door behind her and bolted to her car. She was so late, and her first call needed to be to work. As she waited for the desk sergeant to answer she thought about Sabrina and Alexa. No doubt it had taken Alexa about two minutes to open her presents and Sabrina was already asleep. Before the end of her shift though, she would make sure Sabrina was okay having dinner at her house now that the con was over.

  At her first break of the day, she was surprised to see she had not only missed lunch, but she only had thirty minutes until the end of her shift. Pulling her phone out, she saw a missed call and voicemail from Sabrina. Her message said she had picked up the turkey and trimmings that Devon had ordered and would leave them in Devon’s refrigerator.

  Crap!

  She dialed Sabrina and tried not to panic when the call went unanswered. She returned to the police department and paced the hallway until her shift ended. Running to her car, she drove as fast as she legally could until she reached her apartment.

  Surely Sabrina wouldn’t blame her for her mother’s surly attitude. She knew how rude her mother could be when she thought she had cause. The hope she had felt that morning about her future with Sabrina and Alexa was shattered. She had to make sure things were all right and if they weren’t, she knew she would do everything in her power to fix them.

  She pushed open the door of her apartment and prepared herself to face her parents and possibly Sabrina.

  “Hey, kiddo,” Walter said from his perch on the barstool. A disassembled newspaper spread on the counter in front of him.

  “How bad was it, Dad? Was mom rude to Sabrina?”

  “I was not rude!” Andrea insisted as she appeared in the kitchen doorway.

  Devon walked into the living room and sank onto the couch. “Tell me everything.”

  Andrea took a seat beside her. “I thought it was you coming home early when she unlocked the front door. She was definitely more surprised than we were.”

  “I didn’t have a chance to call and tell her that you were here or that I had told you the truth. What did she say?”

  “She introduced herself and that adorable little girl. I was so infatuated with Alexa that I didn’t even think about the lies you had told until your father told her the cat was out of the bag.”

  Walter spun on his barstool to face them. “I didn’t realize she would be upset but I guess she was embarrassed that she had been a part of your conspiracy.”

  “She dropped the food on the table and bolted,” Andrea added.

  Devon rubbed her face. She had really screwed things up. She had received a Christmas blessing when she had connected with Sabrina and now, she had blown it.

  Devon stood. “I’m sorry, but I need to go talk to her. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” Her eyes focused on the twinkling multicolored lights on her Christmas tree. “Wait, you decorated my tree.” She looked at her parents and then back at the tree. “And, there’s presents.”

  “You know your mother,” Walter said with a grin. “She ran to the store as soon as you mentioned the kid. And then she went back again after she met her.”

  Devon hugged her mother. “Thanks, Mom. Alexa will be so excited. Hopefully I’ll be able to bring them back with me.”

  She paused at the door. “On second thought, come with me. We’ll take the food and the presents. Surely she won’t turn us away.”

  “I think that’s a great idea,” Andrea said excitedly as she gathered the presents into several large shopping bags.

  Once everything was loaded into both cars, she led the way to Sabrina’s. Taking advantage of the time alone, she continued to call hoping Sabrina would answer before they arrived on her doorstep. She hoped she was right about Sabrina’s willingness to forgive. The drive was too fast and too slow. She was still searching for the right words when they pulled in front of the little bungalow.

  She went straight to the door and Alexa whipped it open before she could lift her hand to knock.

  “Devon! I’m so glad you’re here. Mom said, well I’m not really supposed t
o use those kinds of words, but I didn’t think I was going to see you again.”

  Devon hugged her tight. “Where’s your mom?” she asked. Her voice filled with emotion.

  “She’s in the kitchen.”

  “Can you help my parents carry everything in? I think there might be some presents for you.”

  “I’m on it,” Alexa said, running toward the cars.

  Devon walked slowly into the kitchen. Sabrina stood at the counter putting cookies on an oven pan.

  “Dessert before dinner?” she asked.

  Sabrina spun and stared at her. “You have a lot of nerve showing up here.”

  “I know and you’re probably going to be even more upset when you find out my parents are with me.”

  “What!”

  She crossed the room and took Sabrina’s hand. “I want to have Christmas dinner with you and Alexa and so do my parents.”

  “You made me look like a fool. How can I face them again?”

  “I’m so sorry. Things got crazy at work and I thought I had all day to let you know I had confessed. I didn’t think about you showing up at my apartment and running into them.”

  “I couldn’t sleep, and Alexa kept begging to decorate your tree. I thought I would help you by picking up the food. It had seemed like a good idea until I opened your apartment door.”

  She nodded. “That explains where all the decorations came from. My tree looks awesome, by the way.”

  “I’m sure your parents told you that we didn’t stay to decorate. I was extremely embarrassed when your father explained that you had told them the truth. I didn’t know what to say so I got out of there.”

  “You know this isn’t the way I wanted things to go? I told them the truth to make things right.”

  “I know,” Sabrina said, squeezing her hand. “The last few days have been like a rollercoaster. I thought I was going to be alone for Christmas. Then I met you. And then in a flash, it was all gone again.”

  “I’m so very sorry and I promise I’ll make it up to you. My parents are outside with Alexa. Can I tell them it’s safe to bring everything in?”

  Sabrina groaned. “It would be rude to turn them away, but I’m not sure what to say to them.”

  “I’ll introduce you,” she said, pulling them closer. “The way I should have done to begin with.”